Bye Bye Birdie is a stage musical with a book by Michael Stewart, lyrics by Lee Adams, and music by Charles Strouse.
Originally titled Let’s Go Steady, the satire on American society is set in 1958. The story was inspired by the phenomenon of popular singer Elvis Presley and his draft notice into the army in 1957. The fictitious rock star character’s name “Conrad Birdie” is word play on Conway Twitty, another popular singer of the era. The original Broadway production was a Tony Award-winning success. The show also became a popular choice for high school and college productions.
Cast
- Albert Peterson – Dick Van Dyke
- Rosie Alvarez – Chita Rivera
- Conrad Birdie – Dick Gautier
- Kim MacAfee – Susan Watson
- Mr. MacAfee – Paul Lynde
- Mrs. MacAfee – Marijane Maricle
- Randolph MacAfee – Johnny Borden
- Mrs. Mae Peterson, Albert’s mother – Kay Medford
- Hugo Peabody – Michael J. Pollard
- Ursula Merkle – Barbara Doherty
- Mr. Henkel – Charles Nelson Reilly
- Sad Girl – Jasnick Williams